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THE NO-RISK, ALL-GAIN ROUTE TO INSTANT OPTIMISATION JUNE 2020

GAMECHANGER

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SELCO SEES HUGE

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It’s often said that Covid 19 has changed the world – and that is certainly true in logistics. Home delivery has doubled, terms like ‘urgent’ and ‘critical’ have become commonplace, staffi ng levels are problematic and supply chains are stretched. The industry needs game-changing solutions – ways to ease the pressure on supply chains and allow logistics and service fl eets to be more effi cient and responsive than ever, while protecting profi t margins. Enter The Algorithm People.

It has developed My Transport Planner, an online, on-demand fl eet optimisation tool. It brings powerful commercial software to road transport businesses but with all the fl exibility, ease of use, immediacy and pay-as-you-go models of the typical online con-sumer experience.

Forget long implementation processes, months of consul-tancy and noose-tight contracts. If you can buy something on Amazon, you have pretty much all the skills you need to set up and start using My Transport Planner in minutes. And it works for all fl eets from eCargo bike couriers to full-weight, multi-depot trunk-ing operations.

Motor Transport has become

Logistics is even tougher in a post-Covid world, and we need radical and immediate solutions to give fl eets unprecedented agility and commer-cial advantage. Louise Cole reports

Game changerContents

4 My Transport Planner: Instant optimisation with no commercial risks

6 WEGO Couriers doubles its NHS deliveries with My Transport Planner

7 Multi-depot Selco sees utilisation gains8 Deep dive into Sygic dynamic truck navigation9 Your expert route to decarbonisation with

Elmtronics10 Become a My Transport Planner partner today11 The My Transport Planner roadmap – new

challenges, new functionality12 Don’t miss your 30-day free trial here

The newspaper for transport operatorsEditor Steve HobsonSupplement editor Louise ColeSupplements production editor Joanne Betts

WelcomeModern road transport operators need to be able to wring every effi ciency from their fl eets but all too often the technology which allows this comes with extended delays, and very heavy price tags. The cost is particularly problematic given that the benefi ts of opti-misation might vary across diff erent parts of your operation.

Motor Transport is delighted to off er you news of a product which can genuinely give the low costs, immediate benefi ts and high operational fl exibility you need. Transport teams can be plugged into My Transport Planner in minutes, with virtually no prior training – it really is that quick and easy. And with a pay-as-you-go business model, there is no hefty outlay, no commercial risk and no need for an extensive consultation before you get started.

We think this is a great solution for lots of fl eets whether own-account operators, van fl eets, regional distribution special-ists or multi-depot overnight tramping operations.

Read on and see if you agree.Steve Hobson, Editor, Motor Transport

© 2020 DVV Media International LtdPublished by DVV Media International Ltd, First Floor, Chancery House, St Nicholas Way, Sutton, Surrey SM1 1JBRegistered at the Post Office as a newspaper ISSN 0027-206 X

CEO Colin FergusonManaging Director Sarah FergusonSales Director Robert GoldwaterDirector of Partners & Corporate Accounts Natalie HughesProduct Development Director Andrew Tillman

City Quadrant, 11 Waterloo SquareNewcastle upon Tyne NE1 4DPEmail: [email protected]: www.mytransportplanner.com

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INSTANT BENEFIT

2 MOTOR TRANSPORT / THE ALGORITHM PEOPLE

Photography on pages 1, 4, 5, 10, 11 and 12 courtesy of iStock

new normal

MOTOR TRANSPORT / THE ALGORITHM PEOPLE 3

fleets are left paying for software which isn’t benefitting their entire operation.

“This is different. Some fleets might only use it once or twice to reconfigure regular routes, or daily for regional collection and distribution but not their regular trunking. Or they may use it for their entire fleet across every depot in the country.

“Either way they will only be paying for their actual usage, so it’s very easy to compare the costs directly against the revenue of the vehicles optimised. And, indeed, the system can do that for you, visualising routes and showing revenue and costs per mile.”

All optimisation software is relatively sophisticated, but Ferguson says that The Algorithm People has developed the plat-form to also be more robust than normal routeing and scheduling products.

“Most sequencing and optimi-sation software relies heavily on algorithms. However, one prob-lem is that an algorithm may ac-cept poor data input – like wrong postcodes or ambiguous time frames – which will then render the optimisation meaningless.

“In our system the validation is done as the data enters the system and again at the planning stage and before optimisation. The ‘intelligence’ of the system therefore is actually the software, which validates and sense checks at every stage, meaning the final output is always reliable.”

My Transport Planner was

a super-partner for My Trans-port Planner because MD Andy Salter believes this is genuinely a gamechanger for fleet and road haulage operations.

“This is the first software plat-form which really allows fleets to log in, upload their jobs and vehicles in minutes and optimise their assets and routes, immedi-ately,” he says. “It’s a huge boon in any kind of operation. There’s no fuss, no delays and it’s extremely cost-effective.”

“It’s particularly important that there is no capital outlay, instant ROI and no delay in seeing benefits,” says Salter. “This is not a time when operators want to take commercial risks, yet they still need the benefits of first-rate routeing and scheduling. This is a no-risk, all-win product.”

My Transport Planner has a 30-day free trial, after which busi-nesses buy credits for as many or as few vehicles as they want. At 99p per vehicle per day, The Algo-rithm People CEO Colin Ferguson says: “ROI is instant because the time you save optimising just one vehicle will be worth more than 99p.”

Of course, saved timed is just one of many benefits, with fuel efficiency, better asset utilisation, higher productivity and lower mileage all accruing with every optimised route.

Flexibility “Traditionally fleets have had to make a substantial investment in time and money to employ route optimisation software,” says Fer-guson. “The costs involved have meant that it was never worth doing only for certain vehicles, or some contracts, or just to refor-mulate your milk runs. Inevitably

officially launched in May with sequencing and full optimisation versions. It has been in use with fleets since January and has already attracted interest from many haulage fleets, van fleets and own account operators.

It is configured to manage mixed driveline fleets to accom-modate and future proof against the growing numbers of low-car-bon or zero-emission vehicles.

AutomationMy Transport Planner can be used without any integration of back end or transport management software, with data imported manually, or users can upgrade to the Pro version which integrates with the TMS and then optimises jobs and vehicles automatically.

“We’re seeing new users sign up every week,” says Ferguson. “Typ-ically they start with My Transport Planner to see what the system can do for them, and then those who need more specialist optimi-sation, such as managing trailers across different depots, move onto Pro. But that’s still on the same platform and with the same pay-as-you-go payment model.

“We are seeing some larger companies move to pay by fixed term contract because it can take the cost down as low as 49p per vehicle per day. But they still only pay for the number of ve-hicles they use that day, so their monthly cost will go up or down depending on how many vehicles they want to optimise over that period,” he says.

Game changer

“ROI is instant because the time you save optimising just one vehicle will be worth more than 99p”Colin Ferguson

“It’s a huge boon in any kind of operation. There’s no fuss, no delays and it’s extremely cost- effective”Andy Salter

new normal

STRAPSTRAP

Optimisation brings undoubted benefi ts but traditionally it can take months to set up. My Transport Planner delivers fl eet effi ciencies in minutes. Louise Cole reports

Breaking the mould

My Transport Planner is an online fl eet optimisation platform. Unlike existing products on the market, there is no need for lengthy set-ups or extended consultation periods. Fleet managers can simply go online, create an account, input their vehicle and job details and then get on with the business of scheduling and routeing their consign-ments.

And, unlike other products, fl eets don’t have to be tied into lengthy contracts. This is the Netfl ix of fl eet optimisation, with users paying just 99p per vehicle per day. They can use the tool for some of their fl eet, or all of their fl eet and they only pay for what they use.

The Algorithm People CEO Colin Ferguson says the product has been designed for maximum fl exibility to refl ect the many diff erent types of operation in the road transport market.

Fleets doing standard milk runs may choose to use the tool only when they have to redesign routes; parcel couriers may use it to schedule several runs a day; and those wanting to optimise several assets per job – such as tractors, trailers and plant across multiple depots – can upgrade to the Pro version, which is priced only marginally higher than the basic off ering.

“For some of our users this has changed job allocation and route scheduling from hours to a few minutes,” says Ferguson.

My Transport Planner is perfect for any urban distribution operation, for rigid vehicles, van fl eets, service engineers or local collection and delivery operations.

INSTANT OPTIMISATION


How it worksl Register with My Transport Planner and follow the same in-structions as with any new online account.l Use your free 30-day trial before buying credits, to get to know the product and its func-tionality.You are now ready to get started.l Set up your vehicles, depots and drivers on the forms provid-ed. You can type the info in or import matched-fi eld spread-sheets.l Assign depots or starting points for the vehicles and any special attributes such as the range of electric vehicles, or lifting gear.l Import your jobs the same way. l The map will show your drops pictorially. From here you can draw a line around groups of jobs to allocate them, drag and drop them onto a vehicle or simply choose from a list. l The system will ensure that the drops are compatible with the vehicle, eg for tail-lifts etc, and that no vehicle is overloaded. It also takes account of drivers’ breaks.l Press “optimise”. l It really couldn’t be simpler.l If necessary you can edit de-tails or manually change routes after they have been created.l The routes can be produced as pdfs and be sent to mobile devices for drivers. They can also be downloaded as spreadsheets to be fed back into your TMS for management information.l The system will also calcu-late revenue and costs per mile, totals, and mileage, as well as the estimated journey times. Furthermore, it creates ETAs for each drop.

Multi-asset and automated optimisationAlthough most users are starting with My Transport Planner in order to get a feel for the system, those who require full optimisation – such as coupling trailers with artics, optimising across depots or scheduling tramping and over-night work – often move onto My Transport Planner Pro which costs about 20p per vehicle more, but off ers greater automation and multi-asset functionality.

My Transport Planner Pro is available now, and simply inte-grates via an API with the fl eet’s existing TMS and/or mobile appli-cations. Ferguson says the product can be set up within a couple of days.

The API can integrate with ex-isting transport platforms, with a little assistance from the software provider.

Pro comes with a mobile app for sending drivers jobs, ETAs, PODs, vehicle checks and dynamic truck navigation.

The API takes away the need for manual inputting by drawing vehicle details and jobs directly from the transport management system.

However, it is still the same on-line platform and has all the same fl exibility.

“The big diff erence is that fl eet managers can simply ask the system to optimise their drivers, vehicles and consignments auto-matically and it will do it all,” says Ferguson. Pro takes roughly the same time to do this, as it would to run through the process in My Transport Planner. A few hundred jobs may only take a few minutes to optimise.

My Transport Planner Pro comes with fi xed-term contracts, but the amount paid is still on demand, so the operator is never paying for functionality which isn’t being used and isn’t saving them money.

“When people invest the time in integrating the platform with our API, they generally expect to be using it long term and it’s much cheaper for them to move to a fi xed-term contract,” says Fergu-son. “In practical terms no fl eet

will choose to keep paying higher costs when the contract can reduce the cost per vehicle from 99p to as low as 49p.”

Crucially though fl eets are still only charged, month by month, on the number of vehicles they actu-ally optimise – not a fl at-monthly rate.

Pro featuresl Integration with existing trans-port management system l Mobile app for job consignment, PODs and dynamic truck navigationl Fully automated optimisation for up to 3,000 jobs at a time – just press the buttonl Optimises multiple assets per job across depotsl More extensive drivers’ hours provisionl International maps are available if neededl Optimises multi-day trampingl Dynamic planning in real time

PricingMy Transport Planner is designed to be self-funding from the off . There is no up-front capital expense and no commercial risk because you only pay for what you use.

The basic PAYG tariff is 99p per vehicle and Ferguson says that every fl eet will save far more than that in time, fuel and vehicle costs on every optimised route.

And because fl eets aren’t tied in, they can experiment with what parts of the fl eet or types of con-tract benefi t most.

“Our pricing is on our website and is completely transparent,” says Ferguson. “If fl eets choose to take a monthly contract then pricing will reduce from 99p per vehicle to as little as 49p per vehicle – but they are still only charged for what they use so their monthly cost will go up and down depending up the numbers of vehicles they put through the system.

“This means the ROI is instant, because you haven’t paid for any-thing you don’t get an immediate and more valuable benefi t from.”

mytransportplanner.com/pricing


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Fresh produce firm finds a new market

CASE STUDIES

New Covent Garden-based Classic Fresh Foods needed a new market fast when its traditional client base of Lon-don hotels, restaurants and bars were forced to close because of Covid 19. However, its switch to home deliveries would not have succeeded without the discovery of My Transport Planner.

“When we first offered home delivery, we hadn’t realised how different the dis-tribution operation would be from our standard fixed scheduled routes,” says general manager Peter Banfalvi. “Plus,

the orders exploded almost overnight from 20 a day to more than 100.”

Banfalvi tried other commercial software but sophisticated packages required a hefty licence fee and the cheap ones had limited functionality. “It’s unique as a pay-as-you-go system,” he says. “We tried others but I couldn’t export the routes with job allocations, and the loading teams couldn’t assign orders to vans as they were picked. We were losing hours every day.”

Banfalvi discovered My Transport

WEGO Couriers transports a variety of items for Pride Pharmacy to patients of the University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust. When lockdown occurred, the number of prescriptions which WEGO had to deliver daily doubled, and WEGO relied on the My Transport Planner route and asset optimisation tool to ensure that they could cope with the spike in demand.

WEGO Couriers director Chris Beattie says the company is used to being ahead of its market. It runs electric fleets in several UK cities ahead of the Clean Air Zones, it runs a parcel consolidation operation, and its use of intercity high

speed rail links to ship parcels to its couriers in other cities is unique. However, no one anticipated the sudden surge in NHS home delivery work, as huge numbers of people shielded or self-isolated.

“Managing the sudden spike in volumes without My Trans-port Planner would have been very time-intensive,” says Beat-tie. “We already optimise our delivery routes to use resources better and save money. It reduces our planning time and allows us to upload tomorrow’s jobs at the end of each day and allocate them to the right vehicles on the right routes.”

WEGO found having My Transport Planner to optimise the job allocations and routes allowed management to focus on

other aspects of the business – including the challeng-es of operating during lockdown – without having to constantly trouble-shoot resource allocation.

WEGO, which operates a fleet of zero emission vehicles in seven UK cities, also supports emergency provision of blood products to private hospitals and clinics, so needs to be able to respond quickly to client demand.

Beattie says it’s a very intuitive product to use. “There are online manuals to help should you get stuck, and a very supportive and helpful team but

the system is fairly easy to use.”

Planner. “It could do everything I needed very quickly. I have no experience of optimisation but we started using it straight away.”

Banfalvi can now upload all the home delivery orders for the following day each afternoon, export the routed job sheets for the overnight packers and still edit the optimised routes to slot in last-minute wholesale orders from their traditional clientele.

“I save the equivalent of a day’s salary just in better loading times and it has allowed us to scale the business.”

Instead of fixed runs, his drivers now handle completely new routes each day, servicing central London, SE and SW postcodes three days a week and North and East London postcodes two days.

The service has proved so popular that Banfalvi says they will continue with the home delivery operation even when their traditional contracts return, as MTP allows them to blend the two into one seamless operation.

The business now delivers to 200 ad-dresses a day, a feat made possible by MTP. “This was originally about survival, but we’ve discovered a huge commer-cial opportunity.”

WEGO Couriers doubles NHS work with My Transport Planner



Huge gains for building trade distribution operation

Selco has transformed its delivery operation – and My Transport Planner is vital to the next phase

Selco Builders Warehouse is the UK’s leading builders’ merchant, offering a trade-on-ly retail-style experience through its 68 UK branches. In 2019 it opened its first distribution hub for ‘heavy-side’ builders’ products in Edmonton, North London, to service the delivery require-ments for six of its branches. This removed the distribution planning from the stores, raising vehicle utilisation levels from 55% to almost 80%. In the next phase it intends to use My Transport Planner to further improve and stream-line their operation.

Creating a hub operation has brought immediate bene-fits. “This part of our distribu-tion is now under the control of a dedicated transport team,” says Selco head of transport operations, Richard Evans.

“It also separates our distribution operation from customer traffic. That has brought a reduction of 85% in our motor accident rate over the past twelve months for the operations supported by the hub,” he says

Key issues solvedEvans says My Transport Planner has solved several key issues for the business, not least the wide variety of prod-ucts which had out-of-gauge profiles.

“We had looked for a long time for a system which could optimise what we term ‘com-plex and dirty loads’ where the consignment doesn’t fit into standard pallet sizes. It was really difficult to find a system which could cope with this challenge. We worked with The Algorithm People and My Transport Planner has provid-ed a solution to this.”

driver handheld devices for automatic transmission of drivers’ schedules and to relay electronic PODs, messaging by voice or email and to ensure compliance with the compa-ny’s vehicle pre-use check poli-cy. “The manifest won’t appear on the driver’s device until he has completed his pre-use check report,” says Evans.

Productivity gains“We anticipate huge gains in productivity and utilisation across the network with My Transport Planner Pro,” says Evans, “achieving our aim of making our customer experi-ence the best in the industry. However, we will also see sub-stantial cost improvements in vehicle usage.

“One of the benefits of the optimisation platform is that it removes any element of human fallibility and subjectiv-ity. Making efficiency improve-ments is a given,” he adds.

“This product is a ga-mechanger for us. It’s allowing us to embrace efficiencies even with abnormal loads, which other products simply couldn’t give us.”

The product allows weight and pallet size dimensions to be added to load attrib-utes, but also allows physical dimensions to be omitted for out-of-gauge freight. The vehicles always tend to weigh out before they cube out, and so weight is the most impor-tant factor in the allocation process.

“With My Transport Planner we can put all orders on the system and then opti-mise them by vehicle. This will improve our customer experience, which was our first objective, although it will un-doubtedly bring cost benefits as well.”

Having seen the benefits of My Transport Planner, Selco is now intending to upgrade to the Pro version. “We are currently importing data and manually grouping consign-ments for optimisation,” says Evans.

“However, once the API is in-stalled, we will be able to link directly to the order list and fleet details and the optimisa-tion will be automatic.”

The company will also roll out the mobile app to

“We anticipate huge gains in productivity and utilisation across the network with My Transport Planner Pro”

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SOLUTIONS

GPS navigation pioneer Sygic has signed a global agreement with The Algorithm People to promote its innova-tive pay-as-you-go transport planning platform.

The three-year deal will see Sygic become a Super Partner for My Transport Planner. This entails working with The Algorithm People to integrate its navigation and associated mobile apps with the Pro version of its optimisation platform. They aim to create a comprehensive, all-in-one solution on a mobile device, including daily vehicle checks, optimised routes with turn-by-turn navigation, commu-nication of ETAs to custom-ers, and electronic proof of delivery (ePOD).

UniqueUniquely, it also includes what the partners believe to be the very first on-device optimisation. This innovation will enable users to optimise routes in real-time on their mobile devices, then navigate to their destination while avoiding roads unsuitable for the vehicle, for example those spanned by low bridges.

Miroslav Remecky, VP of Enterprise Business Unit of Sygic, says: “Reliable and accurate multiple waypoints optimisation is the back-bone of timely and efficient delivery. My Transport Planner represents an innovative and unique approach, which will help van and truck operators using our enterprise solutions to manage daily jobs better, spend less time planning and lower their costs.”

as those planning to invest in electric trucks.

My Transport Planner can optimise EVs as part of a wider fleet, by factoring in restric-tions such as vehicle range. Sygic’s mapping of electric vehicle charging points means that an EV’s schedule can easily include a top-up charge during a shift.

Sygic created the world’s first navigation app to integrate both charging station locations and mobile payments. Charging points database, charging stalls availability, navigation, and integrated service payments are all available in one single app. It provides information about pricing, what types of connectors are available at a given location, how powerful they are, and their availability. The app includes over 150,000 charging points in Europe.

Remecky says: “My Transport Planner has the potential to disrupt the route optimisa-tion market – and as it also encompasses electric vehicles; it will contribute to accelerating overall commercial fleet elec-trification and the decarbonisa-tion of road transport.”

Sygic is a Deloitte Fast 50 com-pany and features on Deloitte’s Fast 500 EMEA list. Sygic de-veloped the world’s first satnav solution for Apple and the second for Android devices. It has more than 200 million users world-wide. The partnership will make My Transport Planner available outside the UK.

It builds on an existing agree-ment between Sygic and The Algorithm People. The companies announced in January 2020 that they were working to integrate Sygic’s Truck Navigation plat-form into My Transport Planner, providing users with an end-to-end solution from importing jobs, allocating them to vehicles, plan-ning routes and providing drivers with turn-by-turn navigation instructions.

Colin Ferguson, CEO of The Algorithm People, says: “Our technical partnership with Sygic was focused on integration to create a true end-to-end solution for commercial vehicle operators. This agreement provides us with a fast route to global markets, with a trusted, well established and highly respected brand.”

Electric vehiclesIntegrating the technologies also provides operational benefits for the growing number of compa-nies using electric vans, as well

Integrating Sygic’s technology with My Transport Planner creates an end-to-end solution for mobile devices, from daily vehicle checks through to electronic proof of delivery. It also makes life easier for electric van operators

Mobile innovations

“Reliable and accurate multiple waypoints optimi-sation is the back-bone of timely and efficient delivery”

The Sygic partnership brings the following benefits:l Truck navigation and associated apps are integrated with My Transport Planner Prol A comprehensive all in one solution for mobile devicesl It includes vehicle check reporting, optimisation, driver communication, ETAs and ePODl The first on-device optimisation in the marketl Turn by turn navigation avoiding roads unsuited to the vehiclel It includes mapping of electric vehicle charge points, availability and mobile payment


Elmtronics partnership gives a road map to decarbonisation

Elmtronics, one of the UK’s largest installers of EV charging points, has signed a partnership with The Algorithm People to give fleets an evidence-based and expert guide to the deployment of electric vehicles in their operation, making the process more cost-effective, giving a more reliable and predictable return on investment, and ensuring the maximum impact on carbon emissions.

This is important to UK fleets, as the government wants a voluntary indus-try-supported commitment to reduce HGV greenhouse gas emissions from road transport by 15% by 2025, from 2015 levels. Additionally, all new cars and vans will be zero emission by 2035.

“Fleets need expert help to plan their routemap to zero-emission vehicles,” says The Algorithm People CEO Colin Ferguson. “By partnering with Elmtron-ics we have brought the fleet planning, the fleet optimisation and the charging expertise into one place, to give them expert support with planning, operations and infrastructure.”

Data-based analysisThe Algorithm People believe this partnership will be a lifeline to home delivery fleets, courier operations, final mile logistics, van-based service fleets, and regional distribution specialists.

The Algorithm People provide data-based analysis of a company’s vehicle operations, enabling them to pinpoint which vehicles and routes are best suited to electrification. Their soft-ware also optimises the use of EVs in a mixed fleet, helping customers achieve the best possible return on investment.

“It’s very important that scheduling software understands the ways to opti-mise zero-emission vehicles, as well as diesel, so that operators are getting the best return from every vehicle across the whole fleet,” says Ferguson.

“By working together with Elmtronics, we can provide our clients accurate, expert advice on the electrification process. This includes identifying where

EVs can be most effectively used, as well as optimising routes and charging infrastructure.”

Fleets must learn to use EVs in what, to those used to diesel vehicles, is a counter-intuitive manner. They perform best in stop-start environments, where the engine can cut out if stationary and where they can take advantage of re-generative braking. Having an optimisa-tion product which understands this will make a substantial difference to return on investment and whole-life costs.

EV charging infrastructureElmtronics provides intelligent EV charg-ing infrastructure to some of the largest private and public sector organisations in the UK. Its solutions include load-bal-ancing for charging multiple vehicles at the same time, along with user-friendly dashboards and management reports. Load balancing parcels out the available

power across all the vehicles, avoiding grid overload.

Load-balanced charging is important to depots with multiple electric vehicles, as otherwise they may need to upgrade their connection to the grid in order to manage overnight charging, which can be extremely expensive.

Dan Martin, CEO of Elmtronics, says: “Accurate data analytics from The Algorithm People really helps to build the business case for adoption of EVs. It also provides further assurance that the charging infrastructure we provide is perfectly tailored to meet each client’s operational needs.”

“Deploying My Transport Planner is the first step towards creating a decarbon-isation road map,” said Colin Ferguson. “It generates substantial savings which can then be reinvested in EVs, creating a virtuous cycle of reductions in emissions and overheads.”

The industry has to move towards zero-emission vehicles – and this partnership offers fleets the expertise and tools to achieve it cost-effectively

Key benefits for fleetsl The partnership creates a new way for organisations to decarbonise their fleetsl It offers a proven charging solu-tion tailored to a customer’s needsl The Algorithm People provide evidence-based analysis of where,

when, and how to deploy EVsl My Transport Planner can opti-mise all vehicles in the fleet, wheth-er zero-emission or diesell The resulting fleet changes will give the fastest, most reliable way to cut costs and carbon emissions across the fleet

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PARTNERS

The Algorithm People has signed a hundred partners to promote My Transport Planner. What makes it so attractive?

A powerful propositionThe Algorithm People has rapidly built a network of partners for My Transport Planner, recently hitting the 100-partner milestone. This is a diff erent approach to most route optimisation provid-ers who focus on direct sales.

“We designed My Transport Planner to open up the benefi ts of route optimisation to SMEs who don’t yet use this technol-ogy, which is around 90% of the marketplace,” says CEO Colin Ferguson. “Working with well established partners in key sec-tors enables us to scale up and access those companies who will benefi t most.”

PartnershipIts partners are typically compa-nies or consultants who already sell software or hardware to commercial vehicle operators. This includes compliance tools, TMS, navigation, and leasing or fl eet management companies, right through to sector specialists, such as Elmtronics for electric vehicle charging. All partners receive either commission or a revenue share from any My Transport Planner sales they bring to the table.

“Route optimisation is a val-ue-add solution for our partners,” says Ferguson. “It can be a unique selling point in their market. It can also help make their cus-tomers more sticky. The more benefi ts a business can bring to its client, the less likely that client is to leave.

“We also believe that My Transport Planner has several key selling points over competitor products. We have made it sim-

Partners might off er My Trans-port Planner to their clients as it stands or branded as one of their own solutions. This can be the pay-as-you-go solution or My Transport Planner Pro, which can be integrated with their own platform via API. Referral partners are typically companies or con-sultants who receive a commis-sion for referring a client to My Transport Planner.

“The platform can generate savings in a wide range of sec-tors,” says Ferguson. “We have demonstrated ROI in road haul-age, last-mile delivery, logistics, and courier services. It also works for distribution, fi eld sales or mobile service engineers. In order to reach all of those potential customers, we need a wide range of partners, from niche special-ists to multinational brands.”

Anyone interested in joining the My Transport Planner partner network should email [email protected].

ple and intuitive to use and it’s a fully web-based system, so it enables working from home. It is also able to optimise mixed fl eets of EVs and conventional vehicles, which not all route planners cater for.

“Compared to other optimi-sation applications, it doesn’t require complex or expensive integration. Furthermore, as a pay-as-you-go solution, the time taken to convert prospects into sales is substantially shorter than with a long-term contract and consultative sale.”

Its network is broadly classi-fi ed into three segments – super partners, partners, and referral partners. Super partners, like Sygic, are typically leaders in their fi eld, with strong brands and a loyal customer base. For these businesses, route optimisation is a value-add.

“The platform can generate savings for companies operating in a wide range of sectors”

Key selling points of My Transport Plannerl Much more func-tionality than basic route plannersl Can optimise mixed fl eets of EV and conventional vehiclesl Does not require complex integra-tion as per other route optimisation providersl Fully web-based system enables working from homel Sales take much less time for PAYG than for traditional optimisation

Key benefi ts for partnersl Diff erentiation: Pay-as-you-go route optimisation can be a USP in your sectorl Customer retention: A value-add solution makes your customers stickierl Additional income: Receive a revenue share or commission l Enhanced portfolio: White label version you can brand as your own solutionl Comprehensive support: Dedicated sales, marketing, and technical support


My Transport Planner provides a raft of operational benefits to commercial fleets, and helps operators face the challenges of the “new normal”

The road transport industry is incred-ibly resilient. It has survived everything the world has thrown at it thus far, including Covid-19. However, with other challenges now emerging, transport op-erators are going to have to work harder and smarter than ever before in order to sustain their businesses.

The implementation of Clean Air Zones (CAZs) has been called a tax on trucks and a war on white vans. Many operators breathed a sigh of relief when the first wave of CAZs were postponed, but that only buys them a bit more time to prepare. A growing number of studies show that those living and working in cities do not want to relinquish the air quality benefits which came about as a result of lockdown.

In fact, many local authorities are presently ploughing ahead with plans for increased pedestrianisation and more bike lanes in city and town centres. This is expected to lead to a further fractur-ing of the logistics market, particularly for final-mile delivery. Indeed, it could be problematic for van operators if the current surge in demand for home delivery continues. However, it is also expected to create more opportunities for smaller and medium sized compa-nies (SMEs), as well as changing how goods are delivered.

“It is possible to expand home de-

livery in a way that is both sustainable and profitable,” says Colin Ferguson, CEO of The Algorithm People. “There will be huge opportunities here for smaller, more agile companies to enter the mar-ket for final-mile deliveries. They could all benefit from the type of route opti-misation software that was previously only available to much larger firms.

“The Government has recently allo-cated millions to its eCargo bike fund and billions to bike lanes. We therefore expect to see increased use of eCargo bikes in city centres – and My Transport Planner is already capable of optimising them.

“Pedestrianisation will require a more multi-modal approach and potentially mobile hubs, where commercial vehi-cles make stops around the outskirts of urban areas and are met by electric vehicles. Optimisation could make a huge difference to the efficiency of such operations.”

Climate changeThe other important issue when it comes to emissions is climate change. If major corporations retain their cur-rent climate change commitments, it appears increasingly likely that they will look to their supply chains to deliver some of the carbon cuts they need in order to meet those objectives.

Future-proof your fleet

However, money for new vehicles is tight, and many SMEs do not have the luxury of sustainability departments to draft carbon reduction strategies. Recognising this problem, The Algo-rithm People offers a consultative service based on My Transport Planner to create a Decarbonisation Road Map for their clients. The company pro-vides evidence-based analysis using My Transport Planner to demonstrate which vehicles and routes can be elec-trified to deliver the highest possible economic and environmental return on investment. The savings that the system delivers by optimising the whole fleet can be used to fund procurement of more low-emission vehicles, helping to create a virtuous cycle.

“This approach removes the guess-work from investing in EVs, allowing fleets to make properly informed pur-chasing decisions,” said Ferguson.

While larger companies have the re-source to plan their route to decarboni-sation, their transport teams often have another major headache – getting all their software systems to talk to each other. My Transport Planner Pro can integrate with these systems via API, helping to simplify the ‘data digestion’ process for transport managers.

“Data can very easily end up in silos, which creates its own problems,” says Ferguson. “Ultimately, we are here to make work easier for transport managers as well as cutting costs and emissions from their vehicle operations. Data is only any good if it is accessible and easy to use.”

STRAP

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My Transport Planner is a revolutionary, web-based route optimisation tool designed for commercial vehicle operators of all sizes. The efficiency gains it delivers are:

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